Pamela White poses in her home in Ponchatoula, La., with a photo of her son Dararius Evans, who was killed in January of 2020, Thursday, May 4, 2023. White and her family turned to Louisiana’s victim compensation board for help paying for the unexpected funeral. She was met with administrative hurdles, a denial that blamed her son for his own death, a lengthy appeal — all while paying up front through a personal loan that gathered interest as she waited. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Pamela White stared at the silver tree with twinkling lights while she cleaned out her son’s apartment, wondering how in a matter of days she went from celebrating Christmas to having to think about headstones and burial plots.
